Children's Home run by Amber Care Group UK Limited in Redcar and Cleveland

Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 1 Registered provider: Amber Care Group UK Ltd

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private provider. It offers care for up to three children who experience social and emotional difficulties and learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 3 children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The provider was registered with Ofsted in February 2026.The registered manager left their post in August 2026. A new manager is in post and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded, and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 2

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Summary of findings

Children’s experiences are compromised by ongoing conflict with each other and inconsistent support from staff. Children do not always receive the care, support and protection they need to feel safe and secure. Weak management oversight has allowed poor practice to continue and has reduced the effectiveness of care planning. While a new manager has started to address these shortfalls, improvements are not yet fully embedded.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s experiences of living at the home have been negatively impacted by peer conflict and there have been incidents where children have physically hurt one another. Children have needed to be kept separate within their own home to avoid further incidents occurring. As a result, children have not always felt comfortable and safe in their own home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

When children display behaviours that cause harm, there is limited work to help them understand the impact of their actions on themselves and others. Consequences are not always restorative, and opportunities to explore children’s wishes and feelings are limited. Although the new manager has introduced new ways of working and supporting children, these are yet to have any impact.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

One child’s experience of living in the home was adversely affected by measures introduced to try and minimise the risk of behavioural incidents. This included staff speaking quietly, avoiding loud noises and not playing music within the home. While intended to reduce incidents, these measures created a restrictive environment and limited the child’s opportunity to experience warm, natural and nurturing interactions with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are not currently accessing full-time education. Staff and managers are taking appropriate action to identify and secure suitable education placements for all children, including those that have recently oved to the home. Staff support children with consistent routines and establish home learning in the absence of an education setting.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children experience a well-planned transition when they move to the home. Children are introduced to staff, and visits to the home are arranged before they eventually move in. These arrangements help children to become familiar with the staff and their new environment to reduce any anxieties they may experience.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are supported by staff to participate in a range of activities and enjoy new experiences. They are also encouraged to spend time with peers in the community. This Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 3 helps children to develop social skills, build positive relationships and enjoy age- appropriate experiences.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

When children make allegations against staff, these are not always responded to appropriately. On one occasion, a child was injured during a restraint and was told the injury was as a result of their own behaviour. Consequently, the allegation was not reported as it should have been and so not investigated, and staff practice was not subject to scrutiny. This does not demonstrate that children’s concerns are taken seriously and may leave children feeling unheard and unsupported

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

Staff do not always provide children with the level of supervision set out in their plans. As a result, there have been occasions where children have harmed each other. Children are aware that staff are not supporting them as they should, which impacts on their sense of safety and leaves them feeling vulnerable in their home

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

When children become distressed, staff intervention is limited and children are often left to manage their emotions without sufficient support. As a result, children do not consistently receive the care and reassurance they need during periods of distress, which may increase the risk of harm to themselves or others

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

Some children’s plans do not accurately reflect their risks. This limits staff’s ability to consistently understand and respond to children to keep them safe. In addition, there is a lack of clear evaluation of children’s behaviours and the impact these may have on other children living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Multiple staff have raised concerns about a lack of support and guidance from leaders and managers. This has affected staff morale and confidence, with some staff feeling unable to seek support or raise concerns about practice and children’s welfare.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are weaknesses in the monitoring and oversight of the home. Records relating to incidents contain duplication and do not consistently demonstrate management evaluation or reflection. As a result, poor practice has not been identified and addressed promptly. The new manager has recognised these shortfalls and has implemented changes to recording systems and staff practice to strengthen oversight of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Records have been altered, resulting in information that does not provide an accurate account of children’s experiences. This has impacted on care planning and staff’s ability to consistently meet children’s needs. Current leaders have however; taken appropriate action, reinforced expectations regarding record keeping and notified relevant professionals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Although staff receive supervision regularly, this is not effective. There are missed opportunities for leaders and managers to effectively challenge and reflect on staff Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 4 practice. As a result, supervision is not consistently used to develop staff skills or improve the quality of care provided to children. Team meetings, however, are taking place regularly and have been strengthened by the new manager to include learning and development opportunities for staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 5

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to The Children’s Homes Regulations including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi) (b)) 18 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 18 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 6 lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)) 18 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children;

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Requirement Due date

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (1)(b)(c) (2)(a) 18 October 2026

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Recommendation

Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 7  The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the ‘social care common inspection framework’. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Amber Care Group UK Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fast Track House, Thornaby, Stockton-On-Tees TS17 6PT

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Inspector

Kerry Chater, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2875465 9 achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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